


Esmeralda Cousland

by Honchcrowblue



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games)
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-23
Updated: 2019-10-23
Packaged: 2020-12-28 21:34:07
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 9,160
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21143558
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Honchcrowblue/pseuds/Honchcrowblue
Summary: Esmeralda Cousland, Hero of Ferelden, Queen of Ferelden, Wife of Alistair Theirin. Stories :3





	1. Esmeralda's First Pet

**(9:16 Dragon) Esmeralda and Nan where outside the Cousland Estate and roaming the gardens. Nan was holding Esmeralda’s hand, guiding her and showing her all the flowers and vegetables growing. Esmeralda was just 4 years old at the time so her attention span was little to none. Nan tried her best to keep her focused by having Esmeralda say the colour of whatever flower they passed, naming the fruits and vegetables and saying hello to the servants growing the plants. Esmeralda and Nan started to head back inside the estate when they heard a sudden loud rustling in a fern near the entrance. Nan was a little startled but quickly regained her composure and reached for Esmeralda’s hand. When Nan looked down however Esmeralda was no longer there. It didn’t take long for Nan to find the young Esmeralda walking up to the fern where the mysterious noise came from. “Esmeralda, come here. You mustn't get your dress dirty.” Esmeralda pulled back the fern and it was there she saw a little baby bunny. He was Orange and fluffy, he started screeching when the young girl pulled down his shelter. Esmeralda ran to where a bunch of servants were watering lettuce and pulled a handful out of the ground. “Esmeralda! Come back here this instant!” Nan was upset now and worried about how everyone would react to see the young Cousland girl behaving this way. Esmeralda walked to the fern and offered the lettuce to the bunny. The bunny cautiously hopped over to Esmeralda and started eating the lettuce out of her hand. When the bunny finished eating Esmeralda scooped him up and returned to Nan who looked furious after being forced to wait for her. Esmeralda walked ahead of Nan and back into the estate, Nan followed after her. They walked back to Esmeralda’s room and Esmeralda let the bunny go and let him hop around her room. After a few minutes Bryce Cousland walked in. “Hello Pup, how was your tour of the garden?” “Father! Look at what Nan and I found in the garden!” Esmeralda pointed to the bunny with a big smile on her face. “Please let me keep him father! I promise I’ll take care of him! He won’t make a mess and I’ll train him myself! You won’t even notice him I promise!” Bryce chuckled when he saw how excited his little girl was. “Of course! I trust you to take care of him.” “Thank you Father!” Esmeralda almost screamed in excitement. She ran up to Bryce and hugged his legs. “You’re Welcome Pup! What will you call your new friend?” “hmmmmm” Esmeralda said as she turned around to pick up the rabbit and see his face. “What about….Fernie!” Fernie lived a long and happy life. Even though Esmeralda promised that Fernie would not be seen by anyone in the estate that did not last long. Fernie loved hopping around the estate and jump on people's feet. Besides that Esmeralda had no problem training Fernine and even teaching him to do a few tricks. Fernie was the start of Esmeralda’s love for animals and how her talent for animal care and training was discovered.**


	2. First Kill

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 12 year old Esmeralda is on her way back to Highever when she is ambushed and forced to take someones life for the first time.

**(9:24 Dragon) Bryce had decided to bring along Fergus and Esmeralda to a negotiation in Amaranthine for a chance to expose them to the Howe family and lessons on negotiation. The meeting had gone well. Esmeralda stayed by her father and made sure to notice how the meetings took place and how to properly negotiate. She tried to talk to Rendon Howe’s children but struggled with the boys. She managed to get along with Delilah Howe very quickly however. When Esmeralda did have free time she wandered the city with Ser Gilmore, one of the few knights who accompanied the Couslands on this trip. Fergus wasn’t really paying attention to any of the dealings, he would spend most of his time exploring the city and going to the bar. After 3 days in Amaranthine the Couslands packed up their belongings and started heading back to Highever. Esmeralda packed her stuff in a pouch on her horse. Her horse was light brown with long black hair on her head and her legs. She has had this horse for 5 years now and had grown very close with her. Her name was Rosie. Rosie was a gift from Ser Gilmore for Esmeralda’s birthday one year. Once everyone was packed the group started trotting their way back to Highever. The first few hours were very peaceful and uneventful. Fergus was sharing stories about the drunken adventures he went on while in Amaranthine. After a while however the roads became too quiet. The birds had stopped chirping, leaving an eerie silence. The horses were more on edge and harder to control. The knights that were escorting the family were more on edge as they cautiously continued there way down the path. Leaves and bushes were rustling on the side of the road, Whatever was there wasn't good, it was stalking them. There caution was interrupted by the sudden sound of arrows flying right at them. One of the arrows managed to hit one of the knights in the throat. Esmeralda watched in horror as the man she was just laughing with was now choking on his blood, desperately gasping for air before falling off his horse and onto the ground lifeless. Two of the remaining knights rushed the bushes with their swords while Ser Gilmore stayed behind with Esmeralda ready to protect her. Bryce and Fergus had their swords drawn waiting for the knights to draw out the archers. The two knights had successfully found and rushed the archers killing most of them, that is when more people on the opposite side now rushed the horses with daggers. Fergus and Bryce charged the emerging enemies while Ser Gilmore once again stayed by Esmeralda. Esmeralda had started training with a sword and shield at this point but still wasn’t skilled enough to carry one on her own. She stayed behind Ser Gilmore and tried to calm her horse as she watched helpless at the battle. Suddenly an arrow pierced Rosie’s skin hitting her heart. Rosie whined loudly before falling to the ground, crying in pain. The fall had pinned Esmeralda’s leg underneath Rosie and she was unable to escape to safety or console her beloved horse in her last painful moments of life. Blood from Rosie started covering Esmeralda and there was nothing she could do to stop the bleeding. Esmeralda tried calling to anyone for help but everyone was engaged in a fight for their lives where everyone was out numbered. On the side of Esmeralda’s eyes she saw someone with red hair coming towards her, the same shade as Ser Gilmore's. She called out to him, begging for help but as he got closer she realized that it was not ser gilmore at all, but one of her attackers. He was a dwarf with long shaggy hair that was tied up in a top knot and covered in blood. He was walking quickly to Esmeralda, with one dagger in each hand. He stopped in front of Esmeralda and looked at the situation she was in and laughed as he put his daggers away and moved on top of her. Esmeralda tried to punch him but couldn't get a good enough angle to throw a good punch. The dwarf put his hands around Esmeralda’s neck and started choking her. Esmeralda started spasming and kept making frantic movements hoping it would somehow save her. As her vision started going black and her strength started to leave her she managed to grab on to something. She had no idea what she had grabbed but it was the only weapon she had so she swung it at the back of the dwarfs head. She felt the item hit the dwarf and the pressure on her neck suddenly stopped. When she looked up she could see what the mystery item was, one of the daggers the dwarf had put away. His head was stuck in the dagger but it seemed he had died upon impact. Esmeralda wiggled the dagger to try to get his head out but that just lead to the dwarves dead body falling on top of her. She laid there, forced to look at the corpse of a man she just killed staring back at her. Luckily the gang that had attacked her fled pretty quickly after the dwarfs death and remaining survivors could now help Esmeralda escape. Fergus and Bryce lifted Rosies dead corpse up while Ser Gilmore threw the dwarf off her and dragged Esmeralda away. Her leg was broken from the fall but she couldn’t feel it until she tried to walk on it. The two knights had died in the fight, as well as most of the horses. Eventually the remaining group grabbed their belongings from the horses who had died and jumped on the two remaining horses. After two months Esmeralda had given up on sword and shield training and moved on to dagger training. She was able to excel at fighting with daggers and later became one of the best fighters in the Cousland Estate. After that fight she vowed to herself that she would never stand by doing nothing in a fight while people died to protect her ever again.**


	3. Into The Fade At Kinloch Hold

**(9:30 Dragon) “Why do you fight? You deserve more… You deserve a rest. The world will go on without you.” These were the last words Esmeralda heard before her vision fully faded to black and she felt her body start to collapse. Esmeralda is in her room, getting ready for the celebration. Fergus and Bryce had returned home from Ostagar, the battle was successful and the darkspawn where defeated. This type of celebration called for a fun colourful dress, but still elegant and regal. The dress she had chosen was lilac, the shoulders were cut off but still covered the arms with a sheer fabric. To finish off the look she put on a headband crown. Once dressed she turned to Djali. He is napping peacefully on Esmeralda’s bed. Esmeralda reaches into her dresser and pulls out a little black bowtie and puts it on Djali. While she was putting the bowtie on him she leaned down and kissed Djali on the top of the head to wake him up. Djali makes a little snort and starts wagging his tail, Esmeralda gets off the bed and calls Djali to follow, it is time to make her appearance. She makes her way down the hall and heads to the main room. As she passes the guards compliment her and tell her that the party is waiting for her. She opens the door to get to the party and there she is greeted by a lot of friendly faces. Bryce and Eleanor are sitting at a table talking to the army. Bryce is telling the guards what happened at Ostagar and the epic battle that took place there. Eleanor is smiling and laughing with her husband and the guards. It made Esmeralda happy to see her mother smiling again, Eleanor was very worried about the safety of her husband and her son when they went off to Ostagar. Now that they were safe at home Eleanor can finally relax and enjoy the party. “There you are sister, finally decided to join the party eh?” Fergus was walking towards Esmeralda with a big smile on his face. Djali barks happily and runs towards Fergus to give him a warm welcome. Esmeralda laughs and starts walking towards Fergus as well. The two meet in the middle of the room and welcome each other with a long overdue hug. “Auntie, Auntie! Did you hear how father slew all the big bad Dark-prawn with his sword of Justiceness?” Oren had managed to barge his way in between Fergus and Esmeralda, unaware of the emotional reunion he had just ruined. “That's Darkspawn Oren, not Dark-prawn. And I told you to leave your father and aunt alone for the moment.” Orianna walked towards them. The four of them took turns telling stories about what had happened while the other one was away. After awhile Bryce and Eleanor joined them. “You didn’t think you could go this whole party without welcoming back your own father did you pup?” Esmeralda turned around to see her father standing there looking down at her with a big goofy smile on his face. “Oh Father!” She said before jumping into his arms and giving him a big hug. Orianna placed a firm hand on Oren’s shoulder making sure he didn’t interrupt this reunion as well. *Clink, Clink, Clink* The sound of someone tapping their spoon against there glass can be heard from across the room, everyone turns to see who is wanting to make a toast, it is Rendon Howe. When Esmeralda turns to see his face she is filled with rage, but she can’t think of why. Rendon Howe makes a toast celebrating and congratulating her father, her brother and all the guards that fought in Ostagar, Esmeralda is having a hard time focusing on his speech however, she just wants to hit him and she can’t figure out why, the Howe’s had been family friends of the Couslands for years, what did he do to make her so mad? Esmeralda is snapped out of her thoughts and back into reality by the sound of applause and cheering after Rendon finished his speech. She applauded a little just to be polite but quickly excused herself and heads into the hallway. She walks down the hallway trying to calm her emotions, she was never one to let her emotions control her so much, what was wrong with her? She looked down and noticed she was no longer wearing the pretty dress she had put on but was wearing battle armor now. When she looked back up she noticed that all the guards that were in the halls when she first headed to the party were now gone. She kept going down the halls, she had no direction in mind but she just had to get out of there. When she turns the corner she bumps into something, or rather someone. Rendon Howe stood there looking down at her, he had a snarky grin on his face. “What are you doing out here in the hallway, come let us go back to the party, your family awaits your return.” Rendon reaches to Esmeralda to lead her back to the main hall but is met with a dagger to the stomach. She remembers why she was so mad at Rendon Howe now. She remembers the slaughter of her family, The slaughter that Rendon Howe had formed. This was all a cruel illusion reminding her of all she lost. Rendon Howe disappeared into the fade, followed by any remains of the Cousland’s and their estate. Esmeralda looked around the new world, It was strange and empty. Suddenly a magical pedestal appeared in front of her, it showed images of her friends. She remembers now, they were in Kinlock tower, they were trying to save the mages, then they ran into the demon. The sloth demon. This is the fade. She looked back at the pedestal and snapped back into action. It’s time to regroup with her friends and work together to get out of the fade.**


	4. Fergus and Esmeralda

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Esmeralda - 5 years old, Fergus - 15 years old

**(9:17 Dragon) “Fergus, have you finished packing? It’s time to go.” Eleanor called from across the courtyard. The Couslands were packing up to celebrate the wedding of a family friend. Their wedding was by the West Hills which wasn’t far but they were planning to stay for a day or two. Fergus had no idea who the couple were and was upset that he was being dragged along instead of staying at the estate. “Just about!” Fergus called back as he tossed the last chest in the wagon. “Thank you love.” Eleanor said walking towards him. “Go grab your sister and we can leave.” Fergus sighed as he turned around and headed back into the estate. He got to Esmeralda’s room and knocked on the door before entering. Inside was his little sister, just 5 years old, playing with some dolls the servants had made for her. “There’s my sister!” Fergus said to make his presence known. Esmeralda turned around and gave Fergus a big goofy grin, before grabbing one of her dolls and motioning for Fergus to come play with her. “That will have to wait until we get back Esme, we are leaving now, come on.” Fergus extended his hand and Esmeralda got up and grabbed it. Fergus led Esmeralda outside to the carriages and helped her inside before taking a seat next to her. The carriage left as soon as everyone was on and made their way to a beach by the West Hills. The journey there was long and uneventful, they had left early in the morning so they would get there early in the afternoon. As soon as the carriage stopped Fergus and Esmeralda jumped out and started exploring. The beach was covered in decorations for the wedding. There were tables covered in different types of food with servents ready to serve it. Some pens filled with animals were set just off the beach as a petting station to entertain the little kids. On the other end of the beach was were all the tents were set up for the guests. And finally there was what looked like a fair down the beach filled with games and prizes to win. Fergus’ excitement grew when he saw all the games that would give him a chance to prove his fighting skills, all while winning prizes for it. His excitement quickly grew into annoyance however when he was told that he was incharge of his sister and to do whatever she wanted. This of course led to Fergus following Esmeralda straight to the animal pen, and watching her pet and feed them. Fergus loved his sister but he was 15 now and was tired of playing babysitter. After a couple hours the ceremony was about to begin, Fergus grabbed Esmeralda’s hand and led her to where it was being held. The two were seated in the very back, so far away from the couple that they could barely see them. In the middle of the ceremony Fergus heard the sound of swords clanging together above him. He turned around and looked up and saw a couple of boys about his age fighting on top of one of the hills. Fergus was jealous that they got to have fun while he was stuck here, sitting at a wedding of two people he didn’t know. At the end of the Ceremony food was being served. Fergus was stuck sitting with his sister at the kids table while everyone over 12 were at the table with the adults. He turned to check on Esmeralda and saw that she was done eating, then he looked up and saw that the boys were still fighting on the hill. “Come on Esme, let’s go find something fun to do!” Fergus grabbed his sisters hand and snuck away from the party and started hiking up the hill. On the way up it had started to rain, but it was pretty light and Fergus was determined to get in at least one fight on this trip. When they got up the hill Fergus saw the boys and greeted himself. “Ho there friends, your skills are impressive, but would you like to see how a real man fights?” Fergus teased them with a smug smile. The boys laughed and one of them tossed him a sword. Fergus caught it and went into a defensive position waiting to see how the young man with the sword across from him would start this fight. “Stay back Esme, and watch your brother win.” Fergus called back to Esmeralda before charging at the man with his sword. The boys took turns fighting for about an hour and only stopped when the rain had gotten so heavy that it was almost impossible to see their opponent. The boys shook hands with Fergus before heading down the hill. Fergus grabbed Esmeralda’s hand and started following the boys back to the camp. Walking in the rainstorm was almost impossible, Fergus was holding Esmeralda’s hand tightly in the fear that she may fly away. Fergus had to walk slower while holding Esmeralda’s hand and in result he lost the group of boys he was following back to camp. They were about half way down the hill when lightning struck almost directly behind them. This caused the siblings to jump and turn around to see the lightning strike the spot they were not a minute ago. They quickened their pace down the mountain, still not exactly sure where they were heading. It only took a couple of minutes until lightning struck again, this time on the edge of the hill. The ground started to rumble and crumble from the powerful strike, Fergus picked up Esmeralda for safety and tried to find his footing. The ground gave way and crumbled underneath them sending the two into the Waking Sea. Fergus held on to his sister with all his might as they plummeted into the ice cold water below. Fergus started to sink into the water, he was having trouble surfacing while holding onto his sister. He managed to find the strength in his feet and paddle his way up to the surface. He took a deep breath while looking around trying to find shore. “Are you hurt?” Fergus called out to his sister. “No, i’m okay.” She replied. “Okay, just hold on alright, let me know if you see land!” The water was strong and harsh, making it impossible for them to swim one way, not that Fergus knew which way to go. The two bobbed helplessly in the water for what seemed like an eternity, until Fergus heard what sounded like a deer cry. Fergus tried to swim towards the sound but the currents kept sweeping him away from the sound and further into the sea. Just when Fergus was about to give up he saw a piece of rope dancing in the air. He reached for the rope with his free hand and caught it. Fergus started pulling him and Esmeralda up the rope and eventually onto shore. The two got up and ran off the beach and onto land. They walked aimlessly for a while before coming upon a small cave. Fergus led Esmeralda into the cave before heading back out to collect some wood for a fire. He had no luck however as the wood was all soaked and made it impossible to start a fire. Fergus crawled into the cave and let Esmeralda snuggle into his lap for warmth. They were going to have to stay here for awhile, or at least until the storm blew over. Esmeralda was shivering and Fergus was doing his best to try and warm her up. She eventually managed to fall asleep in her brothers lap. Fergus stayed awake all night, he couldn’t fall asleep, if he moved he would wake up Esmeralda, besides, someone had to stay up and watch for danger. The sun had risen and with it the rain had stopped. The sunlight woke up Esmeralda, she looked up at her brother and sleepily whispered Good morning to him. Fergus smiled to himself at the sight of his sweet little sister. The two crawled out of the cave and looked around at where they were. They could now see their surroundings and could hopefully make their way back to the wedding. They went down to the beach and saw the ruins of what once was a dock. The rope that had saved their lives last night had snapped off and was now bobbing in the sea. They kept walking down the beach until they heard someone calling their names. The two hesitated for a moment before realizing that the person calling for them was their mother. The two ran towards the voice calling back to her “Mother, mother we’re here, we’re coming!” “Fergus! Esme! Where are you?” Eleanor called, her voice was getting closer. Finally the two saw Eleanor and ran up to her. Eleanor saw them and started running up to them as well. “Oh my babies! Thank the maker your alright!” Eleanor said giving them both kisses on the head before leading them into the camps and getting them dry clothes. The Couslands decided not to stay for the rest of the party and headed back to Highever early. When they got home Fergus told his father what had happened while they were lost. While his father was worried for his children's safety he was proud of his son for protecting his sister and knew that the two would always watch and protect each other.**


	5. End of the Fifth Blight

**(9:31) After a long and hard battle the archdemon Urthemiel laid on the ground, hurt, but not yet defeated. Alistair and Esmeralda knew they had to end this quickly, before Urthemiel regained his strength. Alistair drew his sword and charged towards the archdemon but he was swarmed by darkspawn and was forced to stop and defend himself. The darkspawn surrounded Alistair, attacking him from every angle. Alistair would have perished if it wasn’t for Morrigan and Leliana defending him. When the horde started thinning Alistiar started charging towards Urthemiel again. He was just a few meters away when he had to stop himself. Esmeralda had gotten to Urthemiel first and was sinking her daggers into his head, delivering the killing blow. Alistair's heart sank when he saw his love charge at the monster. He knew that the killing blow itself wouldn’t kill her but he still worried for her safety. His thoughts were cut short however as he and his companions were thrown back by an explosion coming from the archdemon. Esmeralda was also thrown back from the explosion. She was thrown into the air and was flooded with visions of her life. She saw her and fergus playing in the yard with fake wooden swords, then she saw her parents tucking her into bed and reading her a bedtime story. She saw Nan, she was scolding Esmeralda for letting her pet rabbit out of his pen again. Then a young Gilmore appeared, he had a beautiful brown horse, a gift for her birthday. Djali was bouncing up and down wagging his little tail in excitement, he was always so happy to see her. The memories then moved on to her current companions and adventure. She saw her and Leliana braiding each others hair and gossiping about others in the group. Esmeralda and Morrigan where sitting next to the fireplace snuggled closer than ever before, they were the sisters they never had to each other. Then Wynne was casting a healing spell on Esmeralda’s leg, Wynne had become a motherly figure to her. She saw her and Zevran in a tent together, he was telling her one of his many Antivan Crow stories as she listened braided his hair. Esmeralda had just handed Sten his sword after a long search, Sten looked up and smiled at her and called her Kadan for the first time. Oghren and her were drinking some of his ale, it was disgusting and she almost threw up while Oghren was laughing. Then her and Shale were collecting gems. Esmeralda would hold them up to Shale and she would either make a disapproving grunt or a funny “ooh” sound when she liked it. Finally her memories faded to Alistair. His face, his smile, his eyes. She remembered the relief on his face when she came out of Flemeth's hut. When Alistair gave her a rose, and the first night they spent together. The first time they said “I love you.”. Esmeralda was filled with regret, having her life flash before her eyes made her realize how much she loved life and how much she wanted to keep living. But she also felt calm. Accepting her fate and knowing that her final moments made an impact she closed her eyes and let the darkness take her. Alistair woke up on the cold hard floor. He tried to stand up but stopped at a kneeling position as his whole body was wracked with pain. Alistair looked up at the battlefield, it was covered in dust and dead bodies, both darkspawn and people. He saw Morrigan and Leliana start to pick themselves off the floor which eased him a little but not fully. He forced himself off the ground with a loud painful cry and started calling for Esmeralda. Morrigan and Leliana were soon up as well and joined Alistair in the hunt for their warden. Alistair started having doubts about the ritual performed last night and feared that the final blow had killed her. Alistair was filled with rage and grief and started yelling at Morrigan , calling her a liar and a witch. Morrigan defended herself calling Alistair a moron but she would be lying if she said she wasn’t filled with any doubt. The two’s bickering was interrupted by Leliana shouting at them telling them to look at a crumpled wall before running towards it. The two followed Leliana to the wall and there they saw Esmeralda. She was buried underneath broken ruble and her face was pale. Alistair jumped to his lovers side and started digging her out with the help of Leliana and Morrigan. They were careful not to move the ruble in a way that would crush her more but also as quickly as they could to prevent her condition from getting any worse. When they got most of the ruble off Alistair grabbed Esmeralda’s arms and dragged her out of the ruble. Alistair then sat on the floor and cradled her body in his lap. She looked really pale, too pale. Alistair desperately searched for a pulse and panicked when he couldn’t find one. Finally he found one on the side of her neck, it was faint and dying but it was still there. Morrigan started to cast a healing spell on Esmeralda, although she cursed herself for not knowing any powerful healing spells like Wynne. Leliana ran off to find a healer or someone with potions. Alistair continued to cradle her body, stroking her hair out of her face and weeping softly, the thought of him losing his love after all this was too much. Morrigan and Alistiar shared a look with each other, a look that was sorrowful and scared for the future. Morrigan's spells seemed to be making an effect as wounds on Esmeralda’s skin started to heal and her colour was slowly coming back to her. After a while the rest of the group came running towards the wardens and Morrigan to help. Wynne knelt beside Alistair and started performing her magic. It wasn’t long before Esmeralda started to stir in Alistair's arms. Everyone was filled with relief at the sight, the blight was now over and everyone could relax again. Morrigan stood up and gave a smile to everyone while a single tear fell down her cheek. She then turned her back towards the group and transformed into a bird. She flew into the sky and out of sight from her companions knowing she will never see them again. **


	6. Journey to Kirkwall

**(9:27) "You ready to head out?" Fergus called to Esmeralda from outside her room. "Just about. Trying to be as prepared as possible, we don't know how long we will be "camping" for." Fergus stepped into Esmeralda's room and closed the door behind him. "You know I hate lying to mother and father but they would never let us go on this trip otherwise." The two sat in silence for a moment, thinking about how mad their parents would be if they found out what they were really up to. "It will be our first time in the Free Marches, I hope you know where we are looking once we get to Kirkwall." Esmeralda finally spoke, breaking the silence. "Don't you worry about that, I'm great at winging things." Fergus replied as he turned around to leave her room. "Winging it? You mean you don't have a plan?". "Just finish packing we're leaving soon!" Fergus called back from down the hall. She finished packing her bags and the two mounted their horses. They waved goodbye to they're family members and staff as they went down the path, just the two of them. Once they got out of sight they turned to a stable just outside of Highever. Esmeralda snuck to the back of the barn and their she saw an elf servant. "Hello ma'am. May I ask a favour of you?." Esmeralda asked walking up to her and removing her hood. "My lady Cousland!" The elf said as she fell to her knees. "What can I do for you." "My brother and I are heading on a journey and we need someone to care for our horses while we are gone, but we can't have anyone see them." "Oh, my lady I don't know, my master would not be happy if he found out." "We would pay you handsomely for this, would 30 gold pieces do?" The elfs eyes lit up when she saw the coin purse Esmeralda pulled out of her bag. "Of course! My lady is very kind." the elf said taking the purse and giving her a thankful bow. "Thank you! One more thing, please don't tell anyone you saw us here. We don't want anyone to worry." "Of course my lady, but when should I expect your arrival?" "If we are not back in two weeks time keep the horses, and give them a good home." "Of course my lady, I hope you and your brother have a safe journey." Esmeralda turned back around to her brother and the two started walking to the docks. "Way to go Charmer" Fergus said. "Now the question is how to get on a boat to Kirkwall." The two got to the docks and saw a big boat that was getting loaded with crates that said "Kirkwall" on it. "looks like thats our ride. Fergus said. "Right, we'll need a distraction if we want to get on board. Any ideas?" The siblings scanned the area, while hiding from any passerby behind a barrel. Esmeralda spotted a pen filled with pigs that seemed to be waiting to be moved on board. "Okay, I think I got something" Esmeralda said moving towards the pen. Esmeralda moved to the gate and cut the rope keeping the pen shut. She opened the door and moved out of the way but the pigs did not move out of their pen. Esmeralda looked around for something to get the pigs moving, she looked behind her and saw a torch lighting the entrance to one of the stores. She scurried over to the store and grabbed the torch. "Sorry about this." She said before tossing the torch into the pen and causing the hay inside to catch fire. The pigs squealed and rushed out of the pen running in different directions. The dock workers noticed the pigs escaping and chased after them. Esmeralda saw Fergus run to the boat and she followed after him. Once on the boat the two found a filled storage room and hid in there. "So where did the note say he would be?" Esmeralda asked while pulling herself onto one of the crates to sit on. Fergus pulled out a couple of notes, as well as a map of the Free Marches and put it on one of the crates, using it as a table. "Some place called the Hanged Man. Apparently the bartender there, a man named Corff, told Ransi that he saw his sister and had an idea where to find her. Ransi was the families combat trainer at the Cousland castle. He was well liked by everyone so when he suddenly disappeared it made everyone worry. Despite a week of intense searching they could not find him and could not find any clue to where he could have gone, that was until Fergus found his secret diary in his room. The diary was hidden behind a loose brick in the wall, Fergus only discovered it because he tripped on the carpet in his room and caught himself on the wall, which revealed the hidden compartment. The diary said that Ransi had started investigating the disappearance of his sister, which happened when he was a child. In his last diary entry it says that after sending thousands of notes out each month he got a reply back from the bartender back in Kirkwall so he packed his bags and planned to sneak out of the castle after dark. "I hope he's alright." Esmeralda said. "I'm sure he's find, he's resorful. I just hope this Corff guy isn't full of shit and actually knows where his sister is." Fergus replied while he jumped on the crate with Esmeralda and sat next to her. "Does Oriana know your not really going camping?" "No she does not, and she ideally never will. It's better to not worry her." After a day of travel the boat docked late that night. The siblings got off the boat by pretending to be passengers, thankfully the workers at the dock didn't have the names of the passengers on this boat so their exit went a lot smoother that their entrance. After some thumbling with their oversized map and questioning the locals the two managed to find the Hanged Man and rented a room for the night. When morning came the two headed downstairs where all the other bar patrons were. It wasn't nearly as full as it was last night but it still had a surprising amount of customers. Fergus and Esmeralda walked up to the bartender "Welcome to the Hanged Man, the best tavern in Kirkwall! What can I get you two today?" The bartender looked up from the counter he was cleaning and tossed his rag off to the side. "You are Corff I presume?" Esmeralda inquired. "That's right, how can I help you?" "Allow me to introduce ourselves, I am Esmeralda Cousland, Daughter of Tyrne Bryce Cousland of Highever, and this is my brother Fergus. I believe you responded to a letter from a Ransi Watel about his missing sister? Ransi has unfourtainlly gone missing as well. looking through his notes this tavern was his last known location and it mentioned his plans to talk to you. We were hoping you could point us in the direction he went so we can hopefully find them both." "ah..." Corff responded. "That Ransi fellow sent a bunch of letters to every store in Kirkwall, apparently his family was here in the city when the abduction happened. I got the letter and didn't think much of it, just another crime in Kirkwall I thought. The description that he gave her was pretty basic, Blonde frizzy hair, brown eyes. But one thing did stand out. It said she had a large birthmark over her left eye. Not a week later a woman fitting that exact description walked in. She walked in, ordered a few drinks then rented a room for a couple of days. I wrote Ransi back the day she came in but letters take a while to deliver. Anyways on the third night of her being here the tavern gets a visit from the coterie. It's not unusual for them to show up once in a while but this freaked the poor girl bad and she begged me to not let them know she was here before she ran back to her room and hid their till morning." Sorry, but what are the Coterie?" Fergus interrupted. "Oh right, sorry forgot you were Fereldan. The Coterie is a theives/assassination guild thats thrives in Kirkwall's underbelly Dark Town. So, The next day when they've all left she comes down and explains that she was once part of the coterie but she ran away during a skirmish with another gang. She asked if I knew someplace she could lie low for awhile, somewhere out of Kirkwall and I told her about a hidden cave by the shore of the Wounded Coast, she left for the cave and a couple days later I direct her brother to the same cave and now I guess i'm sending you there as well." "I see, when we get to this wounded coast how are we suppose to find this cave, I mean you did say it was hidden right? I'm assuming we can't just follow a well kept path with signs guiding us there." Fergus jested to Corff. "You have a map of the Free Marches?" Corff asked. Fergus rummaged through his bag until he found his map and laid it across the bar. Corff took out a pen and started mapping out directions to the cave. "Keep going across the shore, while staying by the cliff side. Eventually you'll see a bunch of leaves across the wall. Move them aside and there is your cave." "I see, thank you for your time Corff, you have been very helpful." Esmeralda gave Corff a few gold pieces for his time while Fergus packed up his map and held the door open for Esmeralda waiting for her to finish. The two followed the map and walked along the shore looking for the leaves. "Thank you for coming with me Esme, I know you could probably be having a lot more fun back at the castle , but I feel safer with you by my side." Esmeralda looked at Fergus who was staring at the ground kicking a seashell as they continued down the path. "Of course I wanted to come. I may have switched my fighting class but Ransi was still my trainer for those beginning years. Besides, I can't let my brother walk into danger alone, we're in this together and we'll bring him back together." Fergus chuckled to himself after hearing Esmeralda's speech, which confused her. "That confidence, you truly can move mountains with your words. No wonder everyone wants you to take over as Tyrna instead of me." "Fergus..." Esmeralda was shocked to hear her brothers words. She never thought of him as insecure, what did he have to be insecure about? he was a skilled warrior with a beautiful family, why does he doubt himself?. "Look, I think that's our cave" Fergus stopped and pointed to a bunch of leaves laid across the cliff side. "Are you ready?" "Ready!" The two pushed the leaves off the wall and sure enough there was a small entrance to a cave. Esmeralda went in first, with Fergus following close behind. They had to keep one of their hands on the wall as it was pitch black inside and neither of them had a torch. After a couple minutes of stumbling aimlessly in the dark they spotted some sparks and the sound of fire crackling ahead of them. They headed towards the light and there they saw a campfire with supplies laid around it. "The campfire was recently lit, they should still be here." Esmeralda said as she crouched down to the fire examining the supplies left around it. Fergus turned around and started calling for Ransi. Esmeralda stood back up and turned the opposite direction to help Fergus. She didn't even get a chance to call out his name before she was tackled to the ground. Esmeralda opened her eyes and saw Ransi's sister on top of her with a knife. She moved the hand with her knife up and quickly jolted it back down trying to stab her in the neck. Esmeralda caught her wrist before she could get stabbed but she could feel her grip slipping so she grabbed the knife, allowing it to cut into her hand but stopping it from moving any closer to her. Fergus heard the impact of the two falling to the ground and he turned around to see someone on top of her sister with a knife to her throat. Fergus charged at them and kicked the girl off of Esmeralda and placed his foot on her chest to keep her from moving. "You alright Esme?" Fergus called back to Esmeralda, not daring to keep his eyes off of this attacker. "I'm fine Fergus, thank you for your help." Esmeralda stood back up and kicked the girls knife away from her. The girl sneered when Esmeralda moved back to Fergus to look at her. "Are you Ransi's sister?" Esmeralda asked. "Fuck you!" The girl replied trying to jump out at them but was firmly restrained by Fergus' foot. "We mean you no harm, we are friends of your brother's and we want to help you. Ransi lives at our estate back in Ferelden and I'm sure we could find you a room as well." The girl laid on the ground silent, not responding to their offer but no longer struggling to get free. Esmeralda patted Fergus on the shoulder and motioned for him to take him foot off of her. He was hesitant at first but he knew that they would never find Ransi if they kept his sister captive. When he took his foot off the girl scooted away from them until she reached a wall in the cave and rested against it. "What is your name?" Fergus asked. "Avenra..." The girl spoke. "Well Averna, My name is Fergus and this is my sister Esmeralda." Averna didn't respond, she just kept a cautious gaze on the two. "Is your brother around?" Fergus asked. "He went hunting, he should be on his way back." "Right, you stay here with Avenra. I'm going to keep watch at the entrance of the cave." Esmeralda nodded and sat down by the camp. She placed her hands down on the ground when she moved to sit but she quickly moved it away when her hand started to sting. She looked down at her hand and noticed all the blood gushing out of it. Avenra noticed all the blood as well and moved closer towards her. She cautiously moved to the campfire and crouched down to her pack. She pulled out some alcohol and bandages before sitting next to Esmeralda. "This is going to sting" Avenra said as she grabbed Esmeralda's hand and started to carefully pour alcohol over it. Esmeralda flinched and tried to pull away but Avenra tightened her grip not letting her get away. Avenra then wrapped the bandage around her hand. Esmeralda moved her hand to her eyes to get a better view of Avenra's handy work. "Thank you." Esmeralda said giving her a small smile. "Sorry I hurt you." Avenra replied. The two sat at the fire until Fergus returned with Ransi. The group hugged and celebrated their reunion before packing up their belongings and heading back to the Kirkwall docks. On the way Avenra talked about her abduction and how the coterie raised her from a baby and taught her how to use a dagger as soon as she was old enough to walk. In return the Couslands told them how they snuck on a boat and found them. They escorted them to a boat and was about to get on until they realized how suspicious it would look if all four of them returned. They agreed to make up a story on how Ransi had a family emergency and had to rush home to see his sister. Fergus and Esmeralda decided to stay in Kirkwall for a week and enjoy some real sibling bonding time. The two spent their week shopping in Hightown, hiking in sundermount and getting drunk and playing Wicked grace with some dwarf with some fantastic chest hair. At the end of the week they booked two tickets to a dock in the Storm Coast. They found the elven servant who had been taking care of their horses and paid her extra for her good service. They then rode their horses back to the estate and was greeted by their parents and the castles staff. Once inside Eleanor said they had a surprise for them and called out Ransi and Avenra. Fergus and Esmeralda acted surprised to see them and pretended they had no idea where they had gone. The family then spent the rest of the day together asking the two all about their camping trip.**


	7. Alistair's Rose

(9:30) Alistair sat in his tent in the middle of the night, thumbing a rose between his fingers. How was he going to confess his true feelings for her? What if she doesn't feel the same? "That would make this whole saving the world thing a lot more awkward." He cursed to himself wishing he could be as confident as Zevran always is. Alistair sighed to himself looking at the rose one more time before putting it down by his sleeping bag. He laid down and tucked himself in his sleeping bag for the night, closing his eyes, allowing him to settle down till the morning. Alistair was half-awake when he heard the sound of another log being thrown onto the fire. "Who could be up at this hour?" He thought to himself as he pulled the flap of his tent slightly open to investigate. Outside sat Esmeralda. She was sitting on a log staring at the fire, sniffling. Alistair stood up and started to head out to join her but paused before exiting. He turned around and looked at the rose laying by his bedside. Maybe now was the time to tell her his feelings? He took the rose and put it in his pack, just in case. "Hey, are you alright?" Alistair said and immediately regretted it. "Of course she wasn't okay she's crying, Idiot!" he thought to himself. "Oh Alistair, I'm alright." Esmeralda turned to him and started wiping the tears off of her face. Alistair's heart dropped when he saw her sad eyes and tear-stained cheeks. He sat down next to her "Whats wrong?". "Oh it's nothing, I just had a bad dream." "Archdemon?" Asked Alistair. "No, it was my family. I left them to die and now they haunt me in my dreams. Not just my family, everyone who lived in the estate is dead. The servants, the soldiers, the children, everyone! And I ran." "Hey, don't blame yourself." Alistair said scooching closer to her. "You had no choice but to run, you did what you had to. I think they would be very proud of you if they could see you now." Esmeralda looked at him with what Alistair would describe as "Sad puppy eyes" It broke his heart to see her like this. She was usually very poised and elegant, this was a side of her he did not like to see. They locked eyes for a couple of seconds, letting each other be vulnerable for a moment. Esmeralda looked down back at the fire. "Thank you for your words Alistair." Alistair slightly turned away from her to open his pack. He pulled out the rose and looked at it. "It's now or never" He thought to himself before turning back around to face her. "Here, look at this. Do you know what this is?" He said holding out the rose in front of her. "It's a rose..." She said looking back at him with a confused expression on her face. "Right. Yes. Of course you know what it is. Good" Alistair cursed himself for asking yet another dumb question, this isn't going as smoothly as he had planned. "“I picked it in Lothering." Alistair continued "I remember thinking, How could something so beautiful exist in a place with so much despair and ugliness? I probably should have left it alone, but I couldn't. The darkspawn would come and their taint would just destroy it. So I've had it ever since.” "That's a nice sentiment" Esmeralda smiled at him, which made Alistair blush. He found himself once again being at a loss for words when around her. How is he going to get this out if all his words turn to jelly just by the sight of her? "I-I thought that I might... give it to you actually. In a lot of ways I think the same thing when I look at you." Esmeralda stared at him for a few seconds before slowly reaching out and taking the flower. Their hands brushed against one another as they passed the flower along. Esmeralda held the flower with both hands and moved it against her chest, allowing the top of the rose to come right up to her nose. "Thank you Alistair, that's a lovely thought." She said blushing behind the flower. "I'm glad you like it. I was just thinking... here I am doing all this complaining, and you haven't exactly been having a good time of it yourself." He paused at looked at Esmeralda's face again. "Maker's Breath she is beautiful." He thought to himself before continuing. "You've had none of the good experiences of being a Grey Warden since your joining, not a word of thanks or congratualtions. It's all been death and fighting and tragedy. I thought... maybe I could say something. Tell you what a rare and wonderful thing you are to find amidst all this darkness." Esmeralda's blush grew deeper and she tried to cover her face with her hands but she quickly retracted it when she was stung by one of the thorns. Alistair had never seen Esmeralda so flustered and he didn't know how to feel about it. "I-I feel the same way about you." Esmeralda finally said, regaining some of her composure. "Im glad you like it. Now... if we could move right on past this awkward, embarrassing stage and get right to the steamy bits, I'd appreciate it." Alistair said with a big goofy grin on his face. Alistair always made awkward jokes when he was nervous, it was one of his many talents. Esmeralda didn't mind though she liked his weirdness and awkwardness. She was so use to always putting on this prim and proper face it was nice to see someone so relaxed around her. It made her feel comfortable in return when she was around him. "And you were doing so well too." Esmeralda said teasing him. "Aww messed it up did I? Well better luck next time!" Alistair said awkwardly chuckling to himself. "Thank you for this, goodnight." Esmeralda said before kissing him on the cheek and walking back to her tent. Alistair watched her until the flap on her tent closed. He was then left their stunned, holding his hand up to where she had just kissed him.


End file.
